Moms Talk Q&A

For those new moms lucky enough to ditch post-pregnancy baby weight quickly, it may just be in your genes. It can be fun to watch a scale fall 10 lbs a week after giving birth, but for many new moms, it's the last 10 or so that is especially tricky. How do you lose that last 10 (or more) lbs?

I worked out an arrangement with my husband as we both love to swim. We would take the kid, (and then later, kids) to the pool and I'd swim laps while he'd watch the kids at the pool, and then vice versa. It's something we still do today and it's an activity for the entire family. Today I'm proud to say my kids are great swimmers and that's likely from watching and then doing for their first few years of life.

Juice Box Diaries Columnist Jen Desautels offers her two cents to lose more than two lbs:

New baby means new beginnings, new loves, new unforgettable moments and memories that will shape the rest of your life.

As a new mother (or mother again) you feel you have found your place and reason for being on this earth. Then you look in the mirror and wonder why all this joy and love and possibility has seemed to find a home around your waist, in your face, in your legs.

Part of being able to enjoy the joy of motherhood is to be happy with who you are physically and mentally after the arrival of your baby. With an infant in tow, it is not always easy to find the time to exercise, but it is one of the most important things you can do for yourself in the weeks following the birth of your baby.

I am certainly not suggesting that you start training for a road race, pushing the baby up and down hills in a jogging stroller. But daily walks will get you on the right track. I was fortunate enough with my first child to have a friend with an infant just a couple weeks older than mine. We would meet every morning at 8 a.m. and walk four miles through the Beverley Hills neighborhood.

We were not winning any power walking races, but that time together, in the outdoors was the best part of my day. We discussed the babies, how our lives had changed, all while burning calories!

So find a friend, pack the stroller or put on the Baby Bjorn and take daily walks together. As the weather gets warmer, the delight at being outside in the spring air will be a treat for you and the baby!